November 23, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES II & IV • Page 19 ‘Sarah’s Key’ unfolds on screen like a mystery by Dennis Seuling “Sarah’s Key” (Anchor Bay) looks with unadorned, grim realism at the Holocaust through the eyes of Julia Jarmond (Kristin Scott Thomas), an American journalist working in France. Her family is moving into an apartment that has been in her husband’s family for many years. She gets an assignment to research and write a feature article about an atrocity that occurred in France during World War II -- an infamous 1942 roundup and deportation of 8,000 Jews to French-controlled concentration camps, with Auschwitz the final destination for many. Julia discovers that her family’s apartment was once home to a Jewish family evicted and deported during that time. She does some investigating and learns of Sarah (Melusine Mayance), a 10-year-old girl who attempted to hide her little brother from the French police. The film shuttles back and forth from the present to the World War II era, illustrating how the war has affected people from the 1940s to the present. The movie asks questions that have been raised many times before, but gives the story a very personal slant by focusing on one family targeted by the social-political horror of Nazi rule. If there is a flaw in the film, it is that a subplot regarding Julia’s relationship with her husband seems out of balance with the more important tale of man’s indifference toward fellow human beings. The movie unfolds like a mystery as the audience discovers information as Julia uncovers it, much of it surprising and unsettling, some horrifying. The cast is excellent, with young Mayance particularly effective as heroes, “Super-8” is best when it brings back a not-too-distant past, before mini video cameras, cell phones, and computers. The main characters seem authentic because they act and speak like real kids. Charles (Riley Griffiths) is the writer/ director who longs to incorporate “production value” into his low-budget epic. Martin (Gabriel Basso) is his leading man. Cary (Ryan Lee), with a mouth full of braces, is the special effects expert who has at his command enough explosive substances to blow up a car. Preston (Zach Mills) multitasks as extra, grip, and lighting guy. Joe (Joel Courtney) is the makeup artist. They do not have super powers, they are not wizards, and they cannot travel through time. They are just kids having fun who chance upon information that those in power would prefer to keep under wraps. Director J.J. Abrams (“Star Trek”) has fashioned a movie that puts the relationships among friends above special-effects dazzle. As in “Stand by Me,” viewers get to know these kids, laugh at them, feel for their panic, and root for them to do the right thing. In many ways, it is their coming of age -- maybe a few years too early, but definitely a life-altering experience. The Blu-ray/DVD combo pack contains over two hours of bonuses, including eight featurettes that explore the origins of the Kristin Scott Thomas stars as Julia Jarmond, a journalist researching the roundup and deportation of Jews in France during World War II in ‘Sarah’s Key.’ as Sarah. Available in both Blu-ray and DVD, “Sarah’s Key” contains a making-of featurette. “Super 8” (Paramount Home Entertainment) is about a group of Ohio middle-school kids dedicated to creating a homemade zombie flick in 1979. The title refers to the only affordable film format available to aspiring filmmakers at the time. Filming one night at a nearby railroad station, they witness a freight train crashing into a truck that has intentionally been driven onto the tracks. The kids escape the mayhem unhurt, but soon thereafter their small town is overrun with military personnel who commandeer the site of the wreck without revealing the purpose of their mission. Reminiscent of “E.T.”, Steven Spielberg’s classic that portrayed regular kids story, casting, and creation of the effects, 14 deleted scenes, and director commentary. “Three Amigos: 25th Anniversary Edition” (HBO Home Entertainment) finds out-of-work silent movie actors Lucky Day (Steve Martin), Dusty Bottoms (Chevy Chase), and Ned Nederlander (Martin Short) thinking they have stumbled on the role of a lifetime. In 1916, the notorious bandit El Guapo (Alfonso Arau) and his gang are terrorizing a remote Mexican village. The daughter of the village leader, having seen a silent film featuring “The Three Amigos” and believing them to be real heroes, sends them a telegram asking for their help. Thinking they are being offered a fortune for a personal appearance, the actors arrive in Mexico, only to discover they will be dodging real bullets. This 1986 comedy still holds up well, with its slapstick, sight gags, and memorably silly moments. It’s hard not to crack up when the trio breaks into its unique rendition of “My Little Buttercup” in a dingy Mexican saloon or El Guapo boasts of his “plethora of piñatas.” These three veterans of “Saturday Night Live” are sketch comedy masters, but sustaining a comedy situation for close to two hours is a far tougher task than doing a th ree-minute bit. Still, director Joh n (continued on Crossword page)